Conflict Israel and other nearby countries

I think the lesson there, especially in a Presidential election year, is to not pay much attention to what the incumbent President says publicly.

It's more useful and practical to look at what the United States actually does.

Currently, Congress is discussing, debating and negotiating various elements of United States defence capabilities and so on. An example of that is the extension and strengthening of the United States-Israel Anti-Tunnel Cooperation which has been ongoing since 2016.

The Irregular Warfare Technical Support Directorate in the Pentagon has, according to the legislation, enabled Israel Defence Forces to discover “over 1,500 new tunnel shafts built under community structures including hospitals, schools, and homes in Gaza including 350 to 450 miles of tunnels" since 7th October 2023.

And “has produced technological advances in subterranean capabilities and monitoring, counter-unmanned aerial systems, maritime security, and robotics. Many of these technologies have been applicable to the Israel and Hamas conflict."

The United States* *and Israel militaries will conduct tunnel training together after that for the first time. A sure sign warfare has changed very significantly from the past.

In the long run, these military technological developments alongside a Coalition force between US CENTCOM, Israel Defence Force, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Egypt and others will provide stability to MER eventually. Various threats have to be faced down sooner or later rather than issuing rhetoric which changes nothing. That lack of action led to Hamas ruling Gaza since 2007 with increasing weapons capabilities, Iran strengthening its ability to destabilise MER & nuclear capability, Hezbollah improving their tunnels plus military tactics/strategies via Syrian war and so on.

Allowing all that to grow unchecked has the capability to destabilise Western economies too.

A military confrontation in MER has been long in the making and its certainly not reflective of the reality of the situation for anyone to even put most of the blame onto Israel.

The United States still has very significant military bases in MER, especially in Qatar who play both Western powers and Hamas at the same time.

The central theme has long been the tiny country of Israel under threat from larger neighbours since 1948. It cannot be expected that Western powers such as the United States and United Kingdom will abandon Israel to all that.

Military and economical might are entwined as you can see historically. That relationship is as strong as ever in the 21st Century.

If the US has not been able to substantially alter the course of Israeli actions- what message does that give to the ME with regard to its current efficacy as a power broker in the region?

Of course not all the blame, but where is the reflection here about how Israel’s actions against Palestinians in both Gaza and WB (currently even) will support her future without the iron dome?

I thought the blame was with the UK and US public, international aid and humanitarian organisations, and many countries all over the world, for not supporting the mass killing of Palestinians as a form of self defence.

Meanwhile, in Sudan about 2.5million
people could die of starvation by September. If we weren’t such hypocrites (UK govt), with our selective application of the law, perhaps more time could be spent on who is enabling that conflict.

Georgia Meloni has been a friend of Israel’s, it would be worth contemplating what she said and considering why she said it, rather than automatically looking for reasons to discredit her. I don’t agree with many of her views, but I agree with her assessment of this situation. When even your friends start telling you that you made a mistake, you really need to listen.

So all blame for this situation lies with Israel?
Interesting. Got it.
Also Georgia Meloni, with her neofacism background, is an interesting choice of person to quote!

You have to wonder how useful an ally Israel has become- happy to take US tax dollars , launch a brutal war war with no thought about the day after and give Hezbollah a really good excuse to start a genuinely dangerous offensive while Hamas reconstitutes on another border. There is every chance that Netanyahu wants this war with Hezbollah to prolong his political career and to take advantage of US support for Israel while it still exists. The loss of 1200 people is tragic but just a shadow of the capability of Hezbollah.

This war is doing nothing to weaken Iran and is drawing support from its proxies, putting Americans in general in danger and putting the Jewish diaspora at most risk since early in the last century. Israel, as long as Netanyahu is in power, is a completely untrustworthy ally.

One analyst wryly remarked that Saudi Arabia put religious extremists in jail, but Israelis put them in government. Jordan and Saudi Arabia are acting like the grown ups here- Israel is going down the tubes, led by religious fanatics with no world view other than to take every bit of historic Israel and Judea for themselves.

Thank you for that.

There have evidently been extensive shifts and reshuffles happening.

The US has gone out on a limb to protect Israel, by vetoing UN motions and disparaging the ICC. It has lost some of its credibility with the world as a whole in doing this.

The US has been increasingly sidelined in MER for some time, and arguably it’s recent actions are at risk of accelerating this.

How Israel hopes to make peace in the long run with with its Muslim neighbours by its actions is beyond me.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/tilakdoshi/2023/04/27/peace-breaks-out-in-the-middle-east-as-us-influence-declines-from-opec-to-opec/

If Israel hadn’t launched such an out of proportion response, then there would be more space for leaders to concentrate on Iran.

What are people in the West expected to do about this? You can’t expect the public to green light mass suffering in Gaza. There are serious implications to thinking that the law shouldn’t apply because you see a state as an ally. This doesn’t make us safer.

The best thing would be for the Israeli government to come to their senses and stop this madness. Tell them to stop feeding a situation which increases support for Hamas, and most likely by proxy, Iran, and taking up our time with their shitty behaviour.

As Georgia *Meloni said this week, Israel walked right into a trap.

Thank you for answering about whom you meant.

The West in the form of Biden did warn, I thought, when he said “Don’t do what we did”, to Israel. And, “Don’t!” to Iran.

But then he seems to have helped Israel take actions in a dangerous direction.

I agree with this also

I completely agree with this.
Unfortunately Israel’s government’s actions have made things worse for themselves and the region. I understand how threatened they feel but too many innocent civilians have suffered and that will only mean more support for Hamas and the other Iranian proxies.
The whole thing is a truly desperate tragedy

Iran and the world in general, especially Westerners

I think people in the West are so busy self-flaggelating, sometimes, that they forget that there are interests out there (Iran, Russian) that are actively working to damage and destabilise Western democracies as much as possible.

Iran and the world in general, especially Westerners.

DownNative · Today 11:29
The war in Gaza is a front in a wider conflict intended to distract you from focusing on the wider problem in the Middle East Region (MER).

Without questioning what you say, that there is a wider problem than Gaza in the Middle East Region, I wonder what you meant by “intended to distract you”?
Who intends it, and who is you, please?

The war in Gaza is a front in a wider conflict intended to distract you from focusing on the wider problem in the Middle East Region (MER).

The main destabilising force in MER is Iran with its proxies surrounding Israel. Then we have the problem of Russia and China who also want to see the West seriously decline in influence plus power in MER.

That's why the beginnings of the West-Israel-Arab States coalition is important. This includes Saudi Arabia who also attended the Chief Of Staff meeting.

People are sleeping on the northern Israel & southern Lebanon front, i.e., Hezbollah whose force is bigger than Hamas', have a uniform and also better tunnels than Hamas under Gaza.

The isolation of Iran and the resilience of the Western powers is going to be very, very significant here.

As long as Iran is strong, there won't be a durable peace settlement in MER irrespective of whether Israel & Hamas eventually strike a deal which looks very unlikely to me.

Too close to Shabbat to check my home front app but getting reports that more than 60 rockets were launched up north.

From an Israeli fnews group I’m on (proven to be highly accurate in the last few months, too tired rn to look for msm corroborating links):

Two explosive-laden drones heading toward Israel's southernmost city of Eilat from the eastern direction apparently originating in Iraq were downed by air defenses, the military says.

According to the IDF, the two drones were intercepted by a fighter jet and ground-based air defense systems.

Both projectiles did not enter Israeli airspace, it adds.

The Iran-backed Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed to have launched three drones at IDF positions in Eilat.

Lots and lots of rockets up north for the last few weeks, igniting fires today in the city of kiryat shemona https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/blazes-ignited-by-rockets-scorch-kiryat-shmona-other-northern-towns/

Meanwhile a worrying incident with Egypt.
https://m.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-803872 Of the tunnels found in Rafah, 50 go into Egypt. (Mentioned in this article ) https://www.timesofisrael.com/despite-threats-egypt-is-not-about-to-tear-up-peace-with-israel/amp/
The hostages could have been smuggled out of Gaza through there.
Everything feels balanced on a knife’s edge.

I haven’t been updating recently. There have been attempted terror attacks since I last posted, including an attempted stabbing yesterday. None successful (or didn’t cause life threatening injuries)

Up North is getting increasingly intense, there have been huge barrages of rockets, and waves of drone attacks. A civilian died on Tuesday in a rocket attack, as he came to the scene to assist soldiers hurt by a first missile, and was hit by a second middle. Todays barrage was 75 rockets

https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-799181

Stabbing in Jerusalem 1 hour ago. Terrorist was a Turkish tourist, who entered Israel yesterday. Although the report seems to start off saying an 18 year old was also stabbed, I can't see this reported on other news sites, and reports only the police officer officer, who is in moderate condition.

Stabbing 18 year old girl in ramle (central Israel), she’s in serious condition, suspected terror attack.

https://m.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-798802

attempted terror attack this morning in Jerusalem. Car ramming hit three people, the terrorists got out, but their machine gun jammed. The suspects have been arrested.

https://www.timesofisrael.com/three-lightly-hurt-in-jerusalem-car-ramming-police-searching-for-suspects/amp/

Rachel Goldberg- Polin named as one of time's most influential people in 'recognition of the role she and her husband Jon Polin have had in raising awareness of the hostage crisis'.

Agreed.

www.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-797566